Carpenter&#39;s trestle



Jan. 4, 1955 R. OROURK 2,698,771

' CARPENTERS TRESTLE Filed NOV. 17, 1952 Robert O'Rour/r 1N VEN TOR.

Attorn y:

lllid Slates Patent The present invention relates to certain new anduseful structural and functional improvements in a carpenters trestle orso-called saw horse and the object of the invention is to provide aknockdown trestle construction in which manufacturers, retailers, andusers will find their respective requirements satisfactorily met.

In carrying out a preferred embodiment of the invention, the legs aredetachably secured to the cooperating side portions of the beam, thelatter part being provided with socket members and the upper ends of thelegs being telescopically and removably fitted into the socket membersand aptly connected thereto by suitable latch means.

Another object of the invention is to provide a knockdown trestlewherein the beam and legs are of suitable rigid but light weight metal,aluminum for example, and wherein the beam is in the form of a hollowcontainer in which the legs, after they have been detached, may beplaced and stored in an out-of-the-way position.

Briefly summarized, the invention has to do with a knockdown carpenterstrestle comprising an elongate channel-bar embodying spaced sideflanges, socket members secured to said flanges and providing keepers,channel-shaped supporting legs having upper mitered ends abutting saidflanges and fitting removably into said keepers, and spring biaseddetents carried by said upper ends and releasably cooperating with saidkeepers.

In reducing to practice the preferred embodiment of the invention, thebeam takes the form of a channel-bar. The respective ends are closed oneby a fixed closure member and the other by way of a latch-retained door.The end and intermediate portions of the otherwise open bottom of thechannel are covered by cooperating cleats whereby to thus provide acontainer in which the legs may be removably placed when not in use.

Other objects, features, and advantages will become more readilyapparent from the following description and the accompanying sheet ofdrawings.

In the drawings wherein like numerals are employed to designate likeparts throughout the views:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a carpenters trestle or saw horseconstructed in accordance with the principles of the present inventionand showing the manner in which the same is set up and used;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the beam or head which is hereinespecially constructed to accomplish the ends above referred to;

Figure 3 is a view in section and elevation taken on the vertical line33 of Figure 1 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view on a smaller scale showing the manner inwhich the legs, after they have been detached, or stored removably inthe container portion of the channel;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional and elevational view onthe approximate vertical line 5--5 of Figure 2 looking in the directionof the arrows; and

Figure 6 is a similar view of the opposite end taken on the verticalline 66 of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings by reference numerals and accompanyinglead lines, the main part is denoted by the numeral 8 and this issometimes referred to as a head, a beam or body member and so on.Because of the specific nature of the member here, it is to bespecifically referred to as a rigid light weight metal channel-bar. Itincludes a web 10 and spaced parallel side flanges l2 and 14 havingtapered socket members 16--16 joined 2,698,771 Patented Jan. 4, 1955exteriorly to the side flanges 12 and 14 in paired longitudinally spacedrelation as shown in the drawings. The web 10 may be provided, ifdesired, at longitudinally spaced points with holes 18 for venting anddraining purposes. As brought out in Figure 6, the right hand end of thechannel, which would otherwise be open, is closed in by a fixedlymounted end plate 20. At the same end there is a cooperating cleat 22which spans the bottom and forms a sort of an end pocket. There is asimilar cleat 24 at the left hand end as shown in Figure 5 andcooperating therewith is a hinged member which may be described as anopenable and closable door 26, the same being hinged in place as at 28.A suitable spring retained latch is provided at 30 to normally keep thedoor closed. Therefore there are pockets at both ends of the chest.Further there is a cooperating cleat 32 fixed across the open portion ofthe center of the channel and this cooperates with the respectivepockets in providing a container in a manner to be further described.Incidentally, the numeral 34 denotes a suitable flexible handle forcarrying purposes.

The four legs used are in the form of channel-bars and the legs of onepair are denoted by the numerals 3636 and those of the other pair by thenumerals 3838. These legs are of a length that they are capable of beingstored in a compact, convenient, and out-of-the-way position in theaforementioned container in the manner shown in Figure 4. It may beassumed that the legs are approximately two inches in cross-section orwidth while the width of the channel in which they are to be stored isapproximately four and one-half inches or so. Each leg is of a lengthapproximately one-half the overall length of the channel. This meansthat the legs can be placed along side of each other in pairs and arefitted into the respective pockets and are saddled in place by thecenter cleat 32. The latch held door at the left hand end provides aconvenient means for inserting and removing the legs as is obvious. Theupper end of each leg is mitered or beveled as at 40 so as to bearproperly and firmly against the cooperating flange. Each leg is providedwith a detent pin 42 to fit into hole means 44 provided in the keepersocket. The detent pin is mounted on a suitable leaf spring 46 anchoredin place in the manner shown best in Figure 3. This means therefore,that the upper mitered ends of the legs are slipped into the keepersockets and then fastened in place by the spring-pressed detents or pinsin the manner best shown in Figure 3. As before covered, when the legsare detached from the channel member, they may be properly paired andstored away in the container portion of the channel.

The manner in which saw horses and trestles are used is common knowledgeto those familiar with trestles and the way in which carpenters orpainters use them for various jobs. As a matter of fact, trestles havingdetachable legs are also admittedly old. In the circumstances, it isbelieved that a consideration of the specification and claims inconjunction with the drawings will glarijfy the significance of theimprovements herein set ort From the foregoing, the construction andoperation of the device will be readily understood and furtherexplanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerousmodifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in theart, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact constructionshown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appendedclaim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

A portable knockdown carpenters trestle comprising an elongate rigidchannel bar embodying a web having ventilating holes therein andincluding spaced parallel flanges at right angles to said web,oblique-angled socket members, said socket members being arranged inopposed pairs and each pair longitudinally spaced from the other pairwith the respective pairs adjacent the respective transverse ends ofsaid channel bar, said socket members cooperating with the exteriorsurfaces of the flanges and constituting receivers, said channel barhaving a fixed end closure at one end of the channel, a cooperatingcleat fixed to the flanges and spanning the open side of the channel andcooperating with said fixed end closure and" defining a pocket-likereceiver, a plurality of additional cleats fixed to the bottom surfacesof the flanges and spanning the space between the flanges andcooperating 5 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATESPATENTS Loftin Dec. 31, Oetzel Aug. 28,

Anderson July 15,

Sivey June 7,

FOREIGN PATENTS Germany Dec. 29,

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